58 



catecl who used his native language, for instance, 

 Enghsh, German, or French. 



Education was aristocratic, and no educated person 

 would use the language of the peasants and serfs. Is 

 not there a little of that snobbishness still perceptible in 

 our school and college curricuhy It is only within 

 recent years that Englisli has taken a prominent place 

 in the course of study although it is destined to be the 

 universal language. 



Sometimes the priests had the monopoly of learn- 

 ing ; they too formed a caste and education was con- 

 fined to the monasteries, 



After all these experiments in education, for nearly 

 ten centuries ignorance like a dark pall fell upon the 

 people, and every ray of light was excluded. 



During the sixteenth century a new awakening 

 occurred, and since that period there has been consider- 

 able progress in the matter of jjopular education. 



John Amos Commenius is the tirst of the live or 

 six great educational reformers of modern times. He 

 was born in Moravia in 159:!. and early in life he became 

 a teacher. It is needless to describe the route by 

 which he became world-noted, but suffice it to mention 

 a few reforms in methods which he suggested and 

 which underlie our present educational system. 



First, he advocated the use of the vernacular instead 

 of Latin and Greek. This was a great innovation. 

 Second, that all children, rich and poor, the humble and 

 tlie great receive instruction. This was the beginning 

 of popular education. Third, that girls as well as boys 

 be taught, which was one of the momentous events in 

 the history of woman's enfranchisement. And last but 

 not least, that children be taught the science of common 

 things instead of literature and languages as was the 

 custom. 



Of course such radical reforms could not make much 

 headway during his life-time, and even at this distant 



